1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of document collators and sorters particularly useful for office or convenience copiers and is especially well suited for use as the output copy receptacle of document producing machines. The primary utility presently contemplated for the collator/sorter of this invention is in combination with a convenience copier thus providing a compact copier-collator apparatus able to fulfill a very high percentage of customer requirements. However, the present invention is not necessarily limited to this application. Further, the present invention relates to a collator/sorter adapted to be operated and unloaded with one hand.
2. Prior Art
The term "collator" as used throughout the following specification shall mean a collator/sorter able to perform a variety of sheet distribution functions or modes which include but are not limited to a collate mode in which successive sheets are fed into separate, preferably adjacent sheet receiving bins and a sort or exit pocket mode in which each of the sheet receiving bins is filled to a determinable number of sheets.
Office copiers conventionally provide an output tray into which copies are stacked in uncollated order. If a collate function is required, a separate collate device is normally placed adjoining the copier and the copier's output feed would then selectively exit to either the copier's output tray or the collator. Those collators are frequently of the type providing up to a hundred individual bins, each bin having a sheet holding capacity of as much as one hundred sheets.
Various sheet delivery structures have been employed in the prior art collators. For instance, some prior art collators employ a pivotable ramp having a large number of paper receptacle bins sometimes arranged in multiple stacks. Such a collating device is a comparably extensive and expensive machine itself, being larger than a convenience copier and, therefore, not at all suitable to be an integral part of an office copier. Examples of such pivoted distributors are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,076,391 by Whitehead and 2,856,182 by Cantrell.
Other prior art devices employ a conveyor belt system to transport the sheets along the entrances of the paper bins with a deflector finger provided at each entrance which, when activated, deflects the sheet into the appropriate bin. The provision of various deflectors and the number of sheet receiving bins make such a collator unable to meet the requirements for a small and inexpensive output system for a convenience copier. Furthermore, it is neither possible to unload this kind of sorter from top nor to remove a stack of sheets with one hand. Additionally, the complexity of various motors and actuating devices require an equally complex controlling system which makes a sorter of this type even less suitable to be used as the only output system of an office copier. Examples of such multiple deflector collators are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,237,646 by Hollerith and 2,661,209 by Mc Galliard. Such sorter devices can be implemented with horizontal or vertical receiving bins as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,906,196 by Ritzerfeld et al.
Still other prior art collators employ a moving bin collator receiving sheets from a copying machine by moving past a copy discharge zone. While this design does not need any copy conveyor to feed the copies into the respective bins, the relatively complicated drive system for the moving bins as well as its size makes it unsuitable to be used as an integrated output system of a convenience copier. Additionally the copies cannot be conveniently unloaded and the bulky structure which must be physically moved render such devices slow in operation. An example of such a device is U.S. Pat. No. 2,241,168 by Truitt et al.
Finally, single moving deflector collators have been developed which have reasonable operating speed and reliability for many applications. A primary example of this approach is taught by prior art Wentworth U.S. Pat. No. 2,328,217 which describes a large collator adapted for collating sheets or distributing similar objects into a multiple shelved receiver. These receptacle shelves or bins are arranged in spaced parallel relation to each other forming a column or stack. All bin openings or mouths are ordered in a straight course or path, along which the articles to be distributed are transported by a conveyor system composed of continuous or closed loop belts. The articles to be collated are positively retained betweeen these continuous belts for transport along the straight course. This conveyor system is continuously driven by a first motor mounted to the frame of the collator. To divert or deflect the articles to be distributed into the respective bins, a single deflector assembly is operatively associated with the conveyor and is mounted for movement along the conveyor in the same path as the articles along the entrance mouths of the bins. Movement of this deflector assembly is accomplished by a cable system driven over a reversing clutch by a second motor mounted to the collator frame. An indexing mechanism controls positioning of the deflector assembly at predetermined positions along the conveyor path or course for deflecting moving articles therefrom into selected ones of the receiver shelves. Since the articles to be collated are positively held by the belt-like conveyor system up to the openings of the slightly sloped shelves, the Wentworth collator is substantially independent of particular horizontal or vertical orientations of the device.
The prior art discussed shows the existence of a large number of solutions for collators of different sizes and designs. However, it is clearly recognizable that none of these collators is suited to be integrated into an office copier.
The general object of this invention is to achieve a reliable and small collator/sorter design adaptable for many applications but especially suitable for use within a convenience copier.
Another object of this invention is to combine a convenience copier with a small and compact collator/sorter, thus providing a collating convenience copier.
A further object is to provide a collating copier unloadable from the top for easy access and better control.
An additional object is to provide a copier with an output copy collator which can be conveniently unloaded in a one hand operation in either the collate or non-collate mode.
Another object of the invention is to satisfy most of a user's collation needs with a device of lower cost than the prior art collators.
A further object is to eliminate the need for a separate exit pocket of a convenience copier equipped with a collator.
An additional object is to provide a copier with an output copy collator delivering staggered sets of collated copies.